Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 5, Number 12, March 17, 2002:
an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society.
Copyright (c) 2002, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society.
SUBSCRIBER UPDATES
We have one new subscriber this week: Larry Korchnak,
courtesy of Ed Krivoniak. Welcome aboard! Our
subscriber count is now 443.
KOLBE SALE CLOSING
George Kolbe would like to remind our subscribers that his
current sale closes on FRIDAY March 22; his past sales have
usually closed on a Saturday, so don't miss the deadline!
DAVIS SALE HIGHLIGHTS
Charles Davis writes: "Our sale on March 9 concluded
successfully with the following highlights: The complete set
of the American Journal of Numismatics brought $8,000;
the contributor's set of autographed Red Books $4,000;
Volumes 3, 4/5, and 6 of the Numismatist brought $2650,
$1100 and $975 respectively; near unique and unique Elder
photographic plates $2,000 and $1700, Elder's plated
Mougey $1375; FCC Boyd's scrapbook of New York
Tokens $2100, large paper Pembroke plates $650; Slafter
on Vermont Coinage $500; Chapman's plated Beckwith
$900; Robert Coulton Davis' signed large format Heath
$2000, Frossard's Numisma $2500; Grose's catalogue of
the McClean Collection $1500.
A special word of note is due on the Canadian Numismatic
& Antiquarian Journals advertised as complete. Upon
examination, we noted that Volume 13 of the first series was
not complete, lacking Nos. 3 & 4. What the original owner
had done was bind 48 blank leaves plus two exhibition
catalogues from the Society in lieu of the missing issues in the
Volume 13 case, making it the same size as previous volumes.
We missed that defect during the cataloguing but noted it
subsequently and removed the set from the sale.
The two missing items appear to be great rarities and are
lacking in sets owned by three or four other Canadian specialists
and the Champa set as well. Adding to the mystery is the fact
that under the bookplate of the Cleveland Public Library was
that of Victor Morin of Montreal. We understand he was once
President of the Society and wonder how rare these two issues
must be when someone of his stature could not acquire them.
Perhaps NBS should conduct a census of these issues."
LAKE BOOKS SALE 63
Fred Lake writes: "The catalog of our mail-bid sale of
numismatic literature #63, which has a closing date of April 9,
2002, is now available for viewing on our web site at:
http://www.lakebooks.com/current.html
There are many unique and interesting items in this 640-lot
catalog, including the first draft of the Walter Breen book on
Large Cents, written in 1986 with margin notes by Del Bland.
You will also find a Deluxe Edition of Rick Coleman's book
on "Second Restrike Proof Half Cents", the superbly produced
hardbound copy of the Gene Reale Collection, many early
"Redbooks" (including both printings of the First Edition),
hardbound George Kolbe catalogs, and much more.
Please email me with any questions regarding the sale or
numismatic literature in general." Fred's email address is
fredlake@tampabay.rr.com.
CENTRAL AMERICAN NUMISMATIC CONGRESS
From a press release: "The Museums of the Central Bank
of Costa Rica are organizing the First Central American
Numismatic Conference, to take place from September 1
8-21, 2002, in the Museum's locale in San José, Costa
Rica. This congress is designed to allow Central American
numismatists to exchange knowledge, experiences, and
research methods. We have also provided for the
presentation of papers on other Latin American countries,
in order to enhance the intellectual reach of the congress.
Overall aim: To present the most recent research findings
in the area of Central American numismatics, in order to
compare approaches and methodological advances in the
study of coins
Specific goals:
1. To bring together the leading researchers in the
field of Central American numismatics
2. To promote periodic communication between
Central American researchers in order to share
experiences in the field of numismatics
3. To promote regional studies into the history of
coinage in Central America
Thus far we have received preregistration forms from
collectors and researchers in the United States, El Salvador,
Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Peru, Ecuador, and
Chile, who intend to participate as attendees or as presenters.
Throughout the congress we will be providing simultaneous
translation from English to Spanish and Spanish to English.
For more information about the congress please consult our
web site at www.museosdelbancocentral.org or that of the
Numismatic Association of Costa Rica at www.numismatica.cc."
JEROME KERN, COLLECTOR
Carl Honore writes: "I have this weird habit of combining two
of my favorite hobbies, musicology and coin collecting. In the
biography of composer Jerome Kern by Michael Freedland,
he mentions that Kern joined the ANS around 1941.
However, the ANS has no mention of Kern as a member.
Neither does the ANA . It is well known that he was a coin
collector.
Can anyone shed any light on his membership in either
organization? Also, does anyone have a copy of the Kern
Auction catalog for sale? My email address is:
copperhd@olypen.com"
IRA REED REEDED NICKELS?
Richard Crosby asks: "Can anyone point me to some
information on Buffalo nickels with a reeded edge? I
understand these were made outside of the mint by
someone named Ira Reed."
A web search turned up a page at CoinFacts.com:
"For souvenirs at the 1941 American Numismatic
Association Convention, dealer Ira S. Reed offered
104 sets of 1937 Cent and Five Cents with specially
reeded edges (done outside the Mint). He sold the
two-coin sets for $4 each."
The page pictures the obverse and reverse of the
coin, but alas, does not show the edge. Do any of
our E-Sylum readers have anything to add?
http://www.coinfacts.com/Nickels/buffalo_nickels/1937_buffalo_nickel.htm
RESEARCH ASSISTANCE NEEDED: 1949 A.N.A. SALE
W. David Perkins of Littleton, Colorado, writes: "For my
research on the early United States silver dollars 1794-1803,
I am looking for a copy of the 1949 A.N.A. 58th Annual
Convention Sale, Numismatic Gallery, August 21-24, 1949
with buyer's names (or initials) for the early silver dollar lots,
or the bid book (which I believe exists) with the same
information.
I am most interested in buyers names for Lots 140-212 and
Lots 718-725. The majority of these lots were consigned to
this sale by Adolph Friedman, who acquired them in the 1945
sale of The World's Greatest Collection of United States Silver
Coins. Friedman bought the majority of the early silver dollar
1794-1803 lots in The WGC sale. (Source, Bid Book for
The WGC Sale of Silver Coins). Thus buyer's names for the
1949 A.N.A. sale will provide an important pedigree link,
and one I have been looking for over a long period of time.
I can be contacted at WDPERKI@ATTGLOBAL.NET
Thank you."
IRRADIATION IS DAMAGING, DELAYING COPYRIGHT DEPOSITS.
Dick Johnson writes: "The books stopped coming by mail
October 17th. Mail handlers in the United States Copyright
Office at the Library of Congress refused to open packages
because one envelope, addressed to Senator Tom Daschle,
contained anthrax powder the week before.
The Library of Congress, along with many other government
agencies, diverted all their mail to be irradiated at plants in
Lima, Ohio, or Bridgeport, N.J. Afterwards the Library's
treated mail was stored in trailers. It's still there.
Samples of the treated mail have exhibited paper that has
become brittle, turned brown and the glue rendered ineffective.
Books are literally falling apart and the life of the paper,
normally expected to last for a hundred years or more, now
has an uncertain lifespan.
The Copyright Office is facing other problems: By the time
they do open these packages the $30 copyright fee checks
will be older than six months, past the time most banks will
accept for payment. But what's even worse, music and
sound recordings on tape are in melted plastic jewel boxes!
Savvy publishers have been sending their copyright deposit
packages by FedEx or private messengers and these are
being processed. Read more in a story from the
Cleveland
Plain Dealer:
BOOK FINDS
Denis Loring writes: "At the "New York is Book Country"
street fair several years ago, a dealer had a milk carton
labeled "Coin Books, $1.00". All the carton contained
was Red Books and Blue Books, apparently from the '60's
and onward. But I started digging anyway, got down to
the bottom of the box, and found a first edition and a fifth
edition Red Book. Paid him the full $2.00."
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH FLORIDA
Howard A. Daniel III writes: "I was recently in Jacksonville,
Florida, at the invitation of the Anthropology Department of
the University of North Florida. I had met the department
head in Jakarta, Indonesia, a couple of years ago at a mutual
friend's house. When he learned I had just given a talk to
the Numismatic Society of Jakarta, he asked me if I could
give a talk at his university and I accepted.
When I learned there was going to be the ANA National
Money Show 2002 in Jacksonville, Florida, I corresponded
with the professor and we set up March 6 as my date to
speak, which was the day before the three-day show
started. Since the professor was interested in Indonesia, I
brought several pieces from that area of Southeast Asia,
but I also had one other large concentration of material
from the area of the Golden Triangle of Myanmar (Burma),
Lao (Laos) and Thailand (Siam). The latter pieces were
because a young man with Lao-Hmong parents sent me an
email and asked me to bring some pieces that his parents
and elders had told him and his wife had disappeared.
Then I added a few more pieces from other Southeast Asian
countries and the military and colonial powers of the region.
The young man turned out to be an enlisted man in the U.S.
Coast Guard and was shortly going to its Officers Candidate
School. He was shocked to see so many Hmong pieces,
and I brought duplicates, which I gave to him (and his wife)
for himself and his parents. Tears were coming out of his eyes.
I asked him to send me another email to remind me to send
him addresses of numismatic and book dealers where he
and his family (and other Hmong) can buy authentic numismatic
pieces (there are many fakes!) and books about them. Not
only did I make a great young man very happy, but I think I
made a new numismatist too.
The talk was in a lab and included Masters and PhD candidates
from the Anthropology, Archaeology and History Departments
during a one hour and twenty minutes lunch break. Some
brought their lunches and others ordered pizza from Papa
John's. I laid out all of my pieces on a large table and added
two of my books about Vietnamese numismatics, history,
banking and economics. There was about thirty minutes before
my talk when all of the attendees came up to my table at one
time or another, and I allowed them to handle the pieces, ask
questions, and for me to ask them about their interests.
Many of the attendees were amazed to learn that numismatists
and numismatics were a rich source of information and pieces
very relevant to their studies and work. Some were nodding
their heads in agreement with some of what I was saying, but I
noticed too many of them with shocked looks on their faces
because they had missed us! This was a shock for me to
learn they did not know about our field, but I became very
happy make many more people aware of us.
The purpose of this item is to request that NBS members to
offer themselves to other university and college departments.
I am sure we can bring many new people into using us and
our libraries, but also to encourage many of them to join us
in numismatics.
A second purpose is that I learned that some of them are
working on the excavation of Fort Caroline, a former French
fort in the channel. If you have any information about that
fort, please contact me and I will give you the email of my
professor, so he can pass it on to the right people.
A third purpose is to tell you that I very much enjoyed the
NBS meeting at the show. It is always good to find I am
not alone in my addiction to purchasing, reading and caring
for books.
Please contact me at Howard@SEAsianTreasury.com
if you have any questions about the above."
FEATURED WEB SITE
In honor of St. Patrick's day, this week's featured web page
is from The National Cathedral and Collegiate Church of
Saint Patrick (Dublin), which mentions Jonathan Swift's
connection to numismatic history:
"Swift is most famous throughout the world as a writer, and
in particular as the author of Gulliver's Travels. Gulliver's
Travels was written after his appointment as dean of the
cathedral and was published in 1726. Although now thought
by many to be a book for children, it is in fact a political satire.
The book was an immediate success, the first print selling out
in a week. It soon became available all over Europe,
translated into various languages.
Shortly before this another of Swift's writings had greatly
heightened his profile in Ireland. In 1725 the English
Government had proposed to impose a debased copper
coinage on Ireland; certain individuals including Mr. Wood,
the manufacturer of the coins, stood to make a large profit.
There was an immediate outcry against the proposal but
repeated representations from politicians and public figures
in Ireland proved of no avail. Swift entered the controversy
with a series of letters written under the name of J.B. Drapier.
With a mixture of scorn, satire and economic sense, the
Drapier poured ridicule on the proposed coinage.
The Drapier Letters raised the prospect that English goods
might be boycotted. Walpole?s government was very uneasy
at the growing agitation and the new Lord-Lieutenant,
Carteret, offered a reward of £300 to discover the name of
the author of the letters. Although everyone knew Swift was
the author no-one would come forward and name him. A
government charge against the publisher of "scandalous
seditious libel" collapsed when the jury refused eight times
to return a guilty verdict.
Finally, due to the huge popular clamour raised by the letters
the proposal had to be withdrawn. Swift became recognised
as a great national hero and patriot and in 1729 was
rewarded with the freedom of the city of Dublin."
http://www.stpatrickscathedral.ie/writings.htm
Wayne Homren
Numismatic Bibliomania Society

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